White-throated sparrows are welcomed winter visitors to backyards throughout Georgia. They serenade us even the coldest days, and display an attractive plumage.  While most folks that feed birds are excited when they appear each year, the people that have the best chance of attracting them are those that offer them plenty of food and nearby cover.  In backyard settings, the birds prefer shrubs.

       While the birds feed on the ground, they also dine at elevated feeders.  They eat a variety of foods. The whitethroats that visit my yard seem to prefer white proso millet to all other food offerings.  Other foods eaten by these beautiful sparrows include, nyger, cracked corn, mixed seed, and sunflower seeds, to name just a few.

       White-throated sparrows have huge appetites.   Studies have shown that a white-throated sparrow consumes anywhere from 85 to thousands of seeds per hour.  The number of seeds they devour is linked to the weather; they eat more food in freezing weather.